Chapter 24: If I Go Mad, You’ll Be the First I Bite to Death

The little fire dragon started up from its sickbed with a start, flapping its wings and taking flight right in front of her. The water droplets shaken from its wings splashed onto Yu Xia’s face.

Yu Xia shielded her face with her hand, and the little dragon immediately landed on her shoulder, pressing affectionately against her cheek.

Yu Xia chuckled and poked its belly. "Is that a yes? Can I ride you for a little bit once we get out of here?"

Baru: *I can let you ride me now!*

Baru clutched his wildly beating heart, and his pheromones instantly flooded the entire room, indiscriminately irritating every other sentinel present.

Huo Lin said with a dark face, "If you don’t get your pheromones under control, I’ll knock you out and toss you outside."

The pheromones of dragon-type sentinels, much like their genetics, carried a frenzied aura. Other sentinels could not help but want to fight them the moment they caught a whiff.

Nyx grabbed Baru by the scruff of his neck. "Go outside and douse yourself with cold water to cool off!"

Baru looked at him with teary eyes. "B-boss, Xia... Xia Xia said she wanted to ride me!"

Nyx: "Yes, she said she wanted to ride you. What did you think she meant?"

Baru: "B-boss, didn't you say that 'riding' meant..."

Nyx covered his mouth. "I never said anything of the sort. Shut your mouth."

Baru pulled his hand away. "B-boss, you... you clearly did say it."

He was incredibly excited, his spirit beast manifesting uncontrollably as his thick dragon tail lashed back and forth with loud smacks. "B-boss, is Xia Xia going to..."

Nyx grabbed his collar and tossed him toward the door. "I am your superior! Get out of here! Your pheromones stink to high heaven!"

For the first time, Nyx regretted corrupting the young man. Baru was simple-minded; if told to go east, he wouldn't go west, and if told one, he would never interpret it as two.

"You lot aren't even afraid he'll go insane," Augur, who had somehow removed the rag from his mouth, said to them. "To keep a dragon-type sentinel who could go feral at any moment right next to a Guide... you really are bold."

Baru bared his teeth at him. "If I go feral, you’ll be the first one I bite to death!"

Augur: "Bring it on, you pathetic little stutterer. Being a dragon-type sentinel dumped into a nameless squad—you're just bottom-tier, aren't you? Looking at you, let alone five-star, even a three-star sentinel rating is probably a stretch, right?"

Nyx stepped forward and kicked Augur again. "Why do you have so much crap to say? Can't you keep that dog's mouth of yours shut? Maybe I should just sew it shut for you."

The bathroom door opened, and a small pink head peeked out. "Um, my clothes are wet. Do you have any dry ones?"

Augur stared at her intensely. The next moment, while the other sentinels were still stunned, his spirit beast transformed into the size of a puppy and bolted toward Yu Xia.

The black panther guarding the door bit the reckless pup and flung it aside, then nudged Yu Xia with its head, ushering her back into the bathroom.

Huo Lin: "I'll get you some clothes."

There were no extra dry clothes, and they had nothing in her size, so he only managed to bring back a few blankets.

Yu Xia had no choice but to emerge wrapped in a blanket. Baru had taken her wet clothes to dry them. Before drying them, he had even washed them, thinking that since they were already wet, washing them clean would make them much more comfortable for Xia Xia to wear.

His method of drying was to place them on his spirit beast—a natural heater and dryer for a fire-type dragon.

Yu Xia curled up on the sofa wrapped in her blanket. Huo Lin’s spirit beast pressed close to her to provide warmth, and Nyx’s spirit beast squeezed in as well, flanking her on both sides.

Huo Lin continued working on the mecha parts, while Nyx brought food and water for Yu Xia.

By the time Yu Xia was full, her clothes were nearly dry.

"Boom!" A clap of thunder rolled outside, lightning flickered within the gray clouds, and the next instant, with a "whoosh," a long-brewing downpour poured down.

Before long, a strange smell began to drift in from outside.

Yu Xia sniffed the air, frowned, and asked, "What is that smell?"

Huo Lin: "It’s the smell of the rain. The rain in the contaminated zone is polluted, so it smells a bit unpleasant."

Nyx was busy mending Yu Xia’s clothes. Seeing her rubbing her nose, he pulled an empty vial of guide-suppressant from his pocket and handed it to her. "Smell this; it should make you feel better."

Although guide-suppressant didn't have a very strong scent, it carried a faint fragrance, and unlike regular perfume, its unique properties meant the scent tended to linger for a long time.

Yu Xia took it and held it to her nose. It was a faint orange scent. Though subtle, it magically masked much of the unpleasant smell of the rain.

It was fortunate that Yu Xia’s sense of smell wasn't as sharp as a sentinel's; otherwise, the chaotic and foul odors around them would have been torture. For sentinels with heightened senses, the various bizarre smells of the contaminated zone, the hallucinations caused by pollutants and exotic beasts, and the eerie sounds were all a massive physical and mental ordeal.

Yu Xia’s appearance was like pulling them from hell into heaven. She didn't even need to do anything; just by standing before them, her scent was enough to make them ignore all the other foul smells.

Yu Xia hugged her knees, watching Nyx sew her clothes. His long, powerful fingers were as nimble with the needle as they were with a blade. She was momentarily entranced.

"All done. Come here, try it on." Nyx finished the alterations quickly. He shook out the shirt and helped her put it on.

Yu Xia noticed that the sleeves, which had been too long and wide, now fit perfectly at her wrists. The neckline had also been adjusted. The originally loose men’s shirt had been transformed into something like a women’s puff-sleeve blouse—both beautiful and comfortable.

"You're amazing," she couldn't help but praise. "Just as good as what Mom used to sew."

Nyx was overjoyed by her praise. To be mentioned in the same breath as such a great word as "Mom" was a very high evaluation for him.

However, he kept an indifferent expression on the surface. "Basic skill. A sentinel who can't even do this won't be able to find a partner."

Huo Lin: "..." *Did you really have to take a jab at me like that?*

Yu Xia put on the clothes, which were still warm from the drying process. The tailored outfit felt much more comfortable than before.

Her shoes had been taken by Nyx for adjustments, so she had to remain barefoot for the time being.

Seeing that there was still some time, Nyx thought he might as well find some materials to modify her shoes, too; wearing ill-fitting shoes was far more uncomfortable than ill-fitting clothes.

They had anticipated the rain. They would have to wait for this contaminated storm to pass before they could proceed with their next plan.

Other sentinels in the small town were also taking shelter from the rain. Whenever it rained, it was a carnival for pollutants and exotic beasts, as the rainwater was saturated with the various contaminating elements they craved.

With nothing to do, Yu Xia leaned toward Huo Lin to watch him work on a pile of parts on the table. She asked curiously, "Huo Lin, what is this?"

"The control hub of a mecha." Seeing her barefoot on the floor, Huo Lin pulled her onto his lap. "We’ll use this later to control the mecha at the exit so we can get out of here."